I'm No Hero
by Yondaime Namikaze
Summary: Cast out by the Guardians on the day that was to be Easter, Jack Frost is confronted by Pitch Black in Antarctica. During this confrontation, Pitch pushes harder to persuade Jack to join his side. In his anger, Jack turns on the Guardians, but what unforeseen consequences does this bring and can the Guardians convince Jack to reconsider before it's too late?
1. Betrayed

**This is my first venture into the Rise of the Guardians fandom. I've been reading stories here for a while and have been meaning to add my own stories to the mix, but I'm only just now getting the chance. Had to get some ideas first. Good news is that I have this one entirely planned out, so that should be quick updates (hopefully) and no worry about whether the story will ever actually get finished. I know the ending!**

 **Anyway, this story came to me after watching the movie and listening to the song "Wrong Side of Heaven" by Five Finger Death Punch. I'll be listening to that as I write this story** **. _ I see this story as the teenager/adult version of the movie Rise of the Guardians. The movie is designed for children. This story, however, begins and ends with the movie and provides a darker final match-up between Pitch, the Guardians, and…Jack Frost._** **Just make sure to keep that in mind while reading the story.**

 **By the way (and I promise I'll only say it once in this story), if you want to keep up with information about my stories, I have a Twitter (not my personal account-Fanfiction news only!) that you can follow. Info for that is on my Fanfiction profile.**

 **Okay, so…here we go. I hope you enjoy the story!**

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Chapter 1: Betrayed

Jack Frost couldn't believe it. He thought he had been doing a good deed by offering to return Sophie home. Instead, this good deed turned into something that Jack could never have imagined. Pitch Black had lured him to his lair and caused him to be late in returning to Bunny's warren. This distraction gave Pitch's Nightmares the opportunity to destroy every single egg that Jack, Sophie, and the Guardians had worked to paint for Easter.

In England, Jack found the Guardians. He arrived just in time to see a dejected kid walk right through Bunny as if he was not even there. Instinctively, Jack placed a hand over his heart. That feeling was one that he was all too familiar with; it was the feeling of disbelief. The English kids had come to search for Easter eggs and they had left disappointed…and now they no longer believed in the Easter Bunny. If this was how it was all across the globe…then Easter truly was ruined…and it was all Jack's fault.

While Tooth tried to console Bunny, North explained to Jack everything that the winter spirit already knew. When Tooth joined North and Jack, she immediately noticed what Jack held in his hand, his teeth…his memories, that Pitch had thrown at him before Jack had found himself back in Bunny's Warren.

"Jack! she gasped. "Where did you get that?"

Tooth already knew the answer. She already knew where Jack had gotten his memories from, but still he tried to explain his actions _ **. I need them to know that I never intended for any of this to happen!**_ "I was…it's…" He couldn't finish. What was the point? What answer could he give that Tooth didn't already know?

The full impact of what had happened started to sink in. _**They must think that I sided with Pitch. I've been calling myself neutral this whole time, but… To think that I would choose to help Pitch!? That couldn't be further from the truth. If anything, I'd…I'd want to side with the Guardians.**_

"Where's Baby Tooth?"

Jack tried to answer, but he couldn't form the words. What could he say? He didn't know where Baby Tooth was either. She had not followed him back to the Warren.

"Oh, Jack, what have you done?"

"That is why you weren't here? You were with Pitch?" North accused.

"No! Listen…listen. I'm sorry," Jack tried to reason. How could he explain to them that he had been lured by a voice? One that he thought was so familiar yet still couldn't place. "I didn't mean for this to happen!"

"He has to go," Bunny spoke, his voice flat.

"What?" Jack questioned. _**How did it come to this? They're just going to kick me out over one mistake?**_

"We should never have trusted you!" Bunny yelled this time, approaching Jack and causing the winter spirit to take several steps backwards.

Now Jack felt betrayed. All he'd wanted for 300 years was to feel as though he belonged, to be among those who could see him. He'd finally thought he'd found just that and now…all he could do was gape at what he had just heard.

Softening slightly, Bunny continued, explaining, "Easter is…new beginnings, new life. Easter's about hope and now it's gone." Finishing, he turned and walked away from Jack.

Jack couldn't help but to feel as if this was Bunny's way of asking him to just leave. Desperate, he turned to face North and Tooth behind him, hoping to see some reconciliation. Instead, they both also just turned away. All three of the other remaining guardians had now officially turned their backs on Jack.

As if it could comfort him, Jack looked down at the tiny wooden Santa that North had given him. Finding no comfort in the little figurine, Jack dropped it down onto the grass and allowed the wind to lift him into her comforting embrace. Wind could sense the boy's frustration and grief so she did not have to ask him where he would like to go; she already knew well his place of solitude.

Jack let the wind carry him south to Antarctica. Usually, he enjoyed flying through the sky with wind, but today he just felt numb. He let a few icy tears slip from his eyes. In all of his 300 long years as a spirit, through all the times that he wandered alone, he'd never cried, but right now he couldn't stop it from happening.

Wind set Jack down on a cliff in Antarctica. Aimlessly, he wandered the snowy terrain and replayed the events in his head. _**If only I'd never followed that voice! I still don't know anything more about it than I did when I left Jaime's and Sophie's house. For all I know, it was probably just some sound that Pitch came up with…and clearly it worked. He lured me away long enough to ruin Easter. The Guardians are right. This is entirely my fault.**_

Slipping his hands into the pocket in the front of his blue hoodie, Jack's fingertips found something smooth. Pulling it out, he saw the very cause of his problems: the golden tooth-holder with the picture of the brown-haired boy bearing resemblance to himself. _**This…this…Pitch knew that the Guardians would think I betrayed them if I showed up carrying this. He knew they would assume that I willingly went to his lair and they would think I did it because I no longer wanted to help them. This case has caused enough problems.**_ Jack raced to the edge of the cliff with the golden tooth case raised high above his head, ready to fling it as far away as possible. Still, no matter how angry he felt at the case or at the Guardians or at himself, Jack found that he could not just throw away the case. Looking down at it, and, moreso, at the face upon it, he knew that this little golden case could very well be the only possibility to ever get his memories back. There was no way that he could just throw that away, especially knowing that Tooth and her little fairies had worked so hard to collect the teeth inside of it. Jack growled in frustration, but eventually lowered his hand in defeat.

"I thought this might happen," a dark voice spoke up, startling Jack. "They never really believed in you. I was just trying to show you that, but I understand."

The more words that Pitch spoke, the more Jack could feel his anger rising. Finally, he could no longer hold it in and fired an icy blast at the epitome of darkness. His attempts were blocked by nightmare sand, but Jack didn't care. "You don't understand anything!" he yelled, racing to attack the man who had ruined his budding friendship with the Guardians. Jack fired another shot, but it was blocked once again by Pitch's nightmare sand.

"No? I don't know what it's like to be cast out?" Pitch yelled back. This time, he threw nightmare sand toward Jack, but the winter spirit rolled to his left and jumped up before another shot of the nightmare sand could strike him.

In the air, Jack sent another wave of icy frost, but Pitch again blocked it with his nightmare sand. Touching back down on the ground, Jack was halted as the air was still clouded from the prior attack and block.

"To not be believed in?" Pitch continued his former question. The sound came from behind Jack and the boy turned sharply and raised his staff to attack. He paused though as Pitch continued again. "To long for a family?"

Looking into the Boogeyman's eyes, Jack lowered his staff. The man looked…sincere, as if he wasn't just saying these words; he'd really felt this way.

"All those years in the shadows, I thought no one else knows what this feels like. Now I see I was wrong. You don't have to be alone, Jack. I believe in you and I know children will too."

"In me?" Jack asked, a little unsure. The last time he talked one-on-one with the Boogeyman like this, it had cost him his friendship with the Guardians.

"Yes!" Pitch answered. "Look at what we can do!" He pointed to the tall, spiky formation that Pitch's nightmare sand and Jack's ice magic had created. It truly was impressive. Jack couldn't deny that. "What goes together better than cold and dark? We can make them believe! We'll give them a world where everything…everything is—"

"Pitch Black," Jack interrupted, sensing where Pitch was heading.

Pitch stopped, obviously seeing his error. "And Jack Frost, too," he amended quickly. "They'll believe in both of us."

"No, they'll fear both of us," Jack corrected, taking a step closer. "And that's not what I want." Jack turned to leave.

"I hate to say this, Jack, but I think it's too late for that," Pitch spoke up, his words momentarily stopping Jack from walking away. "You may not be able to see it, but I can."

Jack whirled around, anger seeping into the words he spoke next. "You're wrong, Pitch. The children—"

"Oh, sure," Pitch interrupted, "the children of the world love your 'snow days' even if they don't believe in you. But, have you ever noticed their parents? They dress their children in layer after layer of clothing to protect them from the cold snow and ice that you, Jack Frost, create. You. Are. Dangerous."

Jack took a step back at the words. It was true. Just a few days ago, Jack had sat on the fence of Jamie Bennett's backyard and watched Mrs. Bennett place a warm hat on the young boy's head.

"I told you, Jack. I know peoples' greatest fears. While it is true, that children like you…or, more so, they like what you do. That is true…for now. However, someday, they too will fear you. Very soon, everyone will fear you, Jack Frost."

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 **So many ways that I wanted to end this chapter! I went with this, though, because it foretells the future without giving anything away. We'll give this a try. If it's well-received, a new chapter will come quickly. Hope you enjoyed this first chapter!**

 **Thank you all for reading and supporting I'm No Hero!**

 **Posted: August 25, 2015**


	2. New Alliances

**I'm so excited for this story that I set right to work typing out this next chapter! Hope you all enjoy!**

 **Review Replies:**

 **Cassidy Wang: Yay! I've been meaning to write for ROTG since I first saw the movie months ago. I can't wait to continue writing for this awesome fandom!**

 **Veneno (anonymous): I know that feeling. When you enjoy a chapter and then realize that there isn't more to read. Luckily, I already had already started writing this chapter, so the wait hopefully wasn't too long.**

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Chapter 2: New Alliances

"I told you, Jack. I know peoples' greatest fears. While it is true, that children like you…or, more so, they like what you do. That is true…for now. However, someday, they too will fear you. Very soon, everyone will fear you, Jack Frost."

 _ **Fear me? No, that's wrong. Pitch is lying, just like always. He just wants me to join him in the fight against the Guardians. He wants me to take his side. I'll never agree to that. I will not turn my back on the Guardians. I will never join Pitch.**_

Still, against Jack's will, doubt crept into the back of his mind. _**Why should you side with the Guardians anyway? They abandoned you, remember? Cast you out like you didn't even matter!**_ The voice that Jack heard in the back of his mind was dark and sinister, a twisted version of his own. _**Maybe that's what you really want, Jack! For others to fear you. It would definitely surprise the Guardians. They would take notice of you…and regret ever letting you walk away.**_

The more Jack thought about it, the more he liked the argument presented by the voice, regardless of how dark, sinister, and twisted it sounded. Maybe before Jack had wanted to remain neutral (pushing a little towards the Guardians' side) to this fight between the Guardians and Pitch Black. Now, his stance had changed. Why should he side with the Guardians when they were so quick to believe he betrayed them? _**If they want to think that I betrayed them, let them think it!**_

Jack spun around to face Pitch. The frost teen smirked and his icy blue eyes flashed dangerously. "I never thought I'd say this, Pitch," Jack spoke, his voice taking on a dark edge, similar to the tone used by the guiding voice in his head. "But you are absolutely right. The Guardians have constantly doubted my allegiance. Even from the very beginning, they were unsure of what to think of me as I attempted to hold a neutral stance. All because I did not immediately jump for joy when they wanted to proclaim me as one of them, a Guardian, they didn't trust me."

Jack's voice grew darker with every word. "I was blinded by my desperation for a place to belong, but that's behind me now. Your words just now have opened my eyes."Taking a step closer to Pitch, Jack continued. "Fear. It is strong. I've noticed it while fighting against you. The more fearful the children become, the stronger you get. This all got me thinking, Pitch. What you said, about how everyone will fear me. Maybe that's what I actually want. Maybe that's what I've truly wanted all along. Now, I can finally embrace it. No more 'snowballs and fun times'. Just fear." The evil dark smirk had yet to leave Jack's face as he voiced his inner thoughts, the ideas he had heard from the strange sinister voice. "I'm no hero…and it's time everyone saw that…especially the Guardians."

For a moment, Pitch smirked. In that gesture, Jack thought he saw something, as if Pitch knew something that he was not saying. However, Jack thought little of it. This man had showed Jack a side of himself that he did not know existed…and he felt as though a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Maybe that's what Jack had needed all along. Just to admit to himself that he wasn't supposed to be the hero that the Guardians had wanted him to be.

"I knew you'd come around eventually," Pitch replied, his smirk never leaving his face. "What do you say we pay the Guardians a little visit, hmm?"

Jack merely smirked in reply. This was going to be fun.

888

When the Guardians had finally admitted to themselves that there was no possible way to save Easter, they returned to North's workshop to discuss how to recover from the mess in which they had found themselves.

In the midst of this discussion, the nearest window blew open and an icy blast of North Pole wind instantly chilled the room. North stood up immediately to shut and lock the window. None of the Guardians took notice of the dark shadows in the corners of the room.

"Well, well, it is great to see you all like this," Pitch's smooth voice echoed through the room. He laughed to himself when he watched the three Guardians weakly tense up upon hearing his voice. "You all look so…awful," he finished, stepping from the shadows and flashing the Guardians an evil smile.

"What are you doing here, Pitch?" Bunny yelled, stepping forward. Already his boomerangs were in his hands. However, it was easy to notice that he moved slower than usual; losing Easter was starting to take its toll.

"Relax," Pitch answered, unamused. "I did not come to gloat…not necessarily."

The Guardians relaxed, but only slightly and that was probably only due to their waning powers.

"I did not come here today to boast about my success," Pitch continued, pacing. "Although, it has been nice, you know, seeing how all this loss of belief affects you Guardians." He stopped pacing and slowly looked each Guardian in the eye before speaking once again. "No, I think the reason I actually stopped by was to pass along a warning to each of you."

The Guardians blinked and shared glances between themselves. They knew that whatever Pitch was going to say wouldn't be good; the Boogeyman never "passed along warnings" to anyone.

"Go on," North ordered, gesturing to Pitch with one of his swords.

"My warning to you three…is to give up. While you still can."

"Pssh, there is no chance of that happening!" Bunny answered immediately. "So, you might as well go crawl back into whatever hellhole you came from!"

"Very well," Pitch replied, unfazed as if he had expecting to Guardians to scoff at his warning. "If you won't listen to me, perhaps, you'll listen to him." Looking back to the shadows in one of the corners of the room, Pitch spoke, "Come on out now and speak with the Guardians. They need a little more reassurance to believe our warnings."

The Guardians waited as another figure, shorter and slimmer than Pitch, emerged from the shadows. They gasped when light fell upon this person's face. For the most part, his appearance was just as they were accustomed to seeing. However, now he wore an evil smirk (one that put even Pitch's dark smirk to shame) and his ice-blue eyes flashed dangerously. Emerging from the shadows and coming to a halt face-to-face with the Guardians…was Jack Frost.

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 **Seriously, though, I'm in love with this story. So much that I planned it all out before even writing. In plans, it looked great, but…it's morphed and become so awesome! I look forward to continuing to share this work with all you amazing readers!**

 **Thank you all for reading and supporting I'm No Hero.**

 **Posted: August 26, 2015**


	3. The Cycle of Betrayal Continues

**Nothing much to say, so I won't keep you from enjoying the next chapter!**

 **Review Replies:**

 ** _PhGim.7_** **: Yes! The suspense is building!**

 ** _Tori (anonymous)_** **: Thanks! I'm glad that you love the story so far. Here's the next chapter.**

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Chapter 3: The Cycle of Betrayal Continues

The Guardians waited as another figure, shorter and slimmer than Pitch, emerged from the shadows. They gasped when light fell upon this person's face. For the most part, his appearance was just as they were accustomed to seeing. However, now he wore an evil smirk (one that put even Pitch's dark smirk to shame) and his ice-blue eyes flashed dangerously. Emerging from the shadows and coming to a halt face-to-face with the Guardians…was Jack Frost.

"Jack!" they all gasped in unison.

Jack did not immediately speak. Instead, he silently waited, greatly enjoying the Guardians' shock. It was just as he'd thought. They'd never expected to see him back here so soon and they definitely had not expected to see him here with Pitch. "Didn't expect to see me, did you?" He noticed the Guardians flinch at the dark tone in his voice. "What? Did you think I would just go crawl into some hole and cry after you all turned your backs on me?" He laughed, but it was nothing like his usual laugh. This one was full of malice. "You don't know me very well, then. Of course, you never really did know me at all in the first place, did you?"

The Guardians were stunned speechless. None of them knew what to say to Jack. Finally, Tooth broke the silence. "Jack? What's happened to you?"

Jack uncrossed his arms and spread them open as he answered, "What makes you think something happened to me? Maybe I just finally realized who I'm meant to be."

The Guardians' hearts clenched at hearing Jack's easygoing voice laced with such evil desire and ill-intent. This eternal teenager in front of them looked and sounded so much like the Jack they were just getting to know. Yet, it wasn't him. He had changed…and definitely not for the better.

"You all wanted me to be like you, a Guardian, but I told you then and I'll say it again. I'm not a Guardian. In fact, I've seen how strong fear can be. Maybe instead of protecting children, I'd rather be feared. I'm no hero…and it's time everyone figured that out."

"Jack!" Tooth tried again. "Do you even hear yourself right now? This isn't you! You said it yourself. You're all about snowballs and fun times. We could see it immediately that you loved children. I mean…you were the only one who knew how to handle Sophie when she found her way to Bunny's Warren."

Crossing his arms again, Jack felt his smirk fall away slightly. Tooth was right about what had happened in Bunny's Warren. There was no denying that he had come up with a solution to handle Sophie when all the other Guardians had been stumped for ideas. "Maybe that _was_ me," Jack amended, his dark tone slipping, "But not anymore," he finished, the dark tone returning once again. "That's in the past."

The Guardians all gaped at the Jack Frost that stood before them. What could've happened to cause him to change so drastically? Sure, it was partially their fault for turning their backs on him before giving him a true chance to explain his actions, but they'd all been frustrated; they'd done everything to ensure that Easter was a success and then it was so easily ruined. Had Jack taken their actions personally? Is that why his attitude had shifted and become so much darker?

"Now, I didn't come here to talk with you all. The time for talk is over. It's been over since you turned your backs on me," Jack sneered. "Pitch knew that you'd never listen to him. That's why I agreed to come here. I sure as hell did not want to talk with any of you, but Pitch insisted. He warned you to give up. Not that I care what happens to you all anymore, but I insist that you heed this warning. I mean think about it," Jack told them, throwing in yet another dark laugh that sent chills down the backs of the Guardians. "You could barely even hold Pitch to a draw when I was there at your side. Now that I'm siding with Pitch, do you really think you are any match for me? Do you really think that you can beat this?" he asked them, thrusting forward the arm that clutched his staff.

The Guardians glanced between themselves and Jack smirked wider as he saw the looks that crossed their faces. They all knew it; Jack Frost had spoken the truth. "That's what I thought. So, just do it. Give up. Admit that you have lost and fade into oblivion…like the rest of your believers," he sneered again, practically spitting out the last word. No matter how powerful and feared he would become, it would always tear at him to know that these…Guardians had kids who believed in them, while he, Jack Frost, the one spirit who had most interacted with the children, had none.

"Well, you've heard him, Guardians," Pitch spoke him, his voice taking on a false happiness. "That's all we've got to say, so we'll be going now." Stepping back to stand near to Jack, Pitch conjured up his nightmare sand and directed it to swirl around himself and Jack. When the black sand fell away, the two were gone. Moments later, the nightmare sand also disappeared, as if it had never even been there in the first place.

888

Pitch's nightmare sand deposited the two back in Pitch's lair. Jack stumbled slightly as his feet touched down on the rocky ground. Traveling by nightmare sand was definitely something he'd have to get used to; it just wasn't as smooth as his flights with Wind.

From above, Jack heard the energetic chirps of Tooth's captured little fairies. They had all recognized him and hoped that he'd release them. Jack sneered up at them. **_No chance._** Briefly, his expression softened and he wondered where Baby Tooth was. He had not seen her since the last time he had been there, when Pitch had tricked him. **_No,_** he realized, **_Pitch didn't trick me. He helped me. If not for him, I would not have seen how the Guardians truly think of me. I'd still be weak fun-loving Jack Frost._** Glancing back up at the fairies one last time, Jack pushed his thoughts of Baby Tooth to the back of his mind. What did it matter what happened to her anyway? She was just a miniature version of Tooth, of the Tooth Fairy who had not hesitated to turn her back on him just like everyone else!

 ** _Well, maybe now they know how it feels,_** he sneered to himself. **_Now that I've turned my back on them just as they did to me! Let this cycle of betrayal continue. They'll see. It'll be much better this way…especially for me!_** As he stood there glaring up at the chirping little fairies, something happened that he did not notice. It was so quick and so slight that Jack was none the wiser. A single strand of his snow-white hair darkened to a deep chocolate shade of brown.

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 **Is it sad that I really enjoy writing Evil!Jack. I don't even know why. He just intrigues me so much! I hope that everyone enjoyed this chapter. I was so close to keeping up the updating everyday streak! Missed it by just over an hour.**

 **Thank you all for reading and supporting I'm No Hero!**

 **Posted: August 28, 2015  
Edited: December 1, 2015**


	4. Jack Tests His Limits

**I set right to writing up this chapter right after the last one was posted. Although, originally I had this to be included in chapter three, but then I decided it would be a much better scene to start off chapter four. Hopefully I made the right choice!**

 **Review Replies:**

 _ **IHaveNoName and IDC**_ **: Thanks! Good guess. In this story, no, he doesn't have an alter ego. In time, I promise to reveal the dark and twisted truth about why Jack has actually decided to side with Pitch. In the meantime, feel free to keep guessing. I might give shoutouts to the person who correctly guesses what's going on with Jack.**

 _ **GirlFish**_ **: You picked right up on that little detail! Nice work! You are completely correct. That will come into play in a bit.**

 _ **Warrior Nun**_ **: I know there are a lot out there. I think I may have even read some Dark!Jack fics before as well. I think my story, though, will add some new twists to the idea, though. I hope so, because I definitely would hate to unknowingly copy someone else's story.**

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Chapter 4: Jack Tests His Limits

"Well, that little reunion went well. Did it not, Jack?" Pitch entered, asking the eternal teenager in his smooth voice.

Jack smirked. "As much as I did not want to go see them all again, I can't deny that their expressions were worth it. They were so shocked that I'd ever think of turning on them. I was right. They really did not know me at all."

Pitch smirked back. "Yes, that was quite satisfying…even for me." He walked over to the globe and watched the lights. There were significantly less of them now that Easter had been ruined. Still some lights flickered, symbolizing children who were teetering between believing in the Guardians and giving up on their beliefs. "There are still too many lights. Even after losing Easter, there are still children that believe."

Jack turned to face the globe as well. His eyes flickered across the lights. One light in particular caught his attention. "One child in my hometown still believes in the Guardians?" he sneered. "How sad."

Pacing, Pitch spoke aloud, "We need a plan; something that will eliminate these remaining lights for good. We must convince these…children to give up their foolish beliefs in the Guardians."

Jack was only half-listening to Pitch at this point. The winter spirit's eyes were locked on the solid light placed near the location of Burgess. If there was one light on this entire globe that Jack wanted to extinguish, it would be that one. A plan formed in Jack's mind. "I think I might have an idea," Jack smirked, answering in a low dark voice.

Stepping back from the globe, Jack turned to Pitch and began to detail the role that he (and, more specifically, his powers) would play into the plan to crush the children's beliefs. Pitch listened quietly to what Jack had to say and waited until the winter spirit had relayed all the details before answering. "I think that may just work," the Boogeyman told Jack. "If nothing else, I'm certain that it will definitely extinguish some of these lights."

"Good. Now, I will begin. For this to work, I have a lot of winter storms to create," Jack finished, his dark smirk returning.

Calling out to Wind, Jack took to the skies to set his plan into motion. This plan would surely test his limits; it would require much of his power to create and maintain all these storms at one time. In all his three-hundred years since awakening under the watchful glow of the Moon, Jack had never conjured up so many storms all at once and for so long. The plan would surely drain his power, but if it succeeded, then Jack would be just fine, knowing the effect it all would have on the Guardians and their believers.

Jack figured that he would journey across the Earth, setting the storms and then, once all were in place, take his rest back home in Burgess to watch over and control the intensity of the storms. Wind howled in sadness, crying out and missing the Jack Frost of snow days and snowball fights. This Jack Frost was not the one she knew and she mourned his dark plans. Still, though, she obeyed faithfully, guiding Jack through the air.

Wind moved Jack east to west across the globe and the winter spirit conjured up blizzards unlike any that the world had ever seen. It never occurred to Jack to wonder how the humans would explain this phenomenon. He didn't really care anyway.

As planned, once Jack had finished setting his widespread blizzards, he returned to Burgess and took a perch on a tree branch overlooking his lake. Later when it was darker, he'd find a place in the small town to sit and oversee the town and how they coped with his blizzard. Jack was pleased with his work. These blizzards were the strongest that he had ever conjured. The storms would definitely be keeping the children indoors…and, as long as the snow and winds continued, there was no way the Guardians would be able to collect the teeth set under pillows by the children.

Sure the idea was redundant, but it didn't matter. If the Tooth Fairy did not place a quarter under these children's pillows, they would still stop believing, just like last time. When developing his plan, Jack remembered how successful Pitch had been last time he'd prevented the Tooth Fairy from collecting the children's teeth. Tooth has lost many believers that night. Of course, Jack had sympathized with Tooth then. He'd known how it felt not to be believed in and he didn't want Tooth to feel the way he did. Now he could care less.

Jack waited high up on his branch. He enjoyed the chill that the blizzard brought to Burgess. As he waited, Jack planned his next move. _**Maybe I'll go check in Jamie. That might be a good place to wait and see if the Guardians even attempt to brave my storm.**_ Approving the idea, Jack shifted to look at the sky. With the clouds from the blizzard, it was harder to guess the time, but it was almost nightfall. Soon, he would make his move.

Once it had grown darker, Jack again called out to Wind, asking her to take him into town. Wind guided Jack into Burgess and gently placed him down near Jamie's house. _**Good. That's exactly where I wanted to go.**_

Knowing that Jamie and his family couldn't see Jack, he approached a lit window and peered inside. Jamie and his mother were sitting on a couch and watching the evening news. The window was open just a crack, as if it had not been shut the whole way and no one had bothered to fix it.

On the news, the weatherman was talking about the strange widespread winter storms that were affecting major cities all across the globe. "This unprecedented weather event is unlike anything we have ever seen and will probably ever see again."

Jack smirked. "Well, if you want strong widespread blizzards, all you have to do is ask," he muttered.

"How much snow can Burgess expect to see from this storm?" a female newscaster on the TV asked the on-screen weatherman.

"It is hard to say, Val. Late winter storms such as this one are rare and this one is especially strong for this time of the year. I can say for certain, though, that it appears this one will be sticking around for several days. As you can see from our radar, this storm cell is large and extremely slow-moving. The combination of these factions will keep this storm lingering on top of us for couple days before moving on eastward."

Laughing, Jack, unseen of course, shook his head. "Listen to them trying to logically explain these storms. How amusing. "

The newscaster and weatherman continued on, recommending their viewers to remain indoors during the strong blizzard and warning of the potential for power outages and burst plumbing. Inside the house, Jamie heard not the warnings and recommendations and, instead, rejoiced because he knew that this storm would mean that he would most definitely be guaranteed more snow days to go out and play with his friends. Jamie's mother, taking more seriously what she just heard from the news personalities, tried to calm her son down, but merely resorted to answering that she thought Jamie should at least wait until the snow stopped falling before thinking about going outside and starting a massive snowball fight.

Hearing Jamie talk about snow days and playing outside with his friends on the days off from school, sent a slight twinge to Jack's heart. He thought back a few days ago to when he had initiated a snowball fight between Jamie and the boy's friends (even if Jamie would never know that it was he, Jack Frost, who had actually thrown that first snowball). Jack's smirk fell away and his gaze softened as his icy-blue eyes focused on Jamie.

Balling his fists, Jack growled in frustration. _**I can't let some…kid stop me from following through with this plan!**_ "Wind, take me up to the roof!" Jack ordered. He needed to step away from this window because, if he didn't, his compassion for Jamie would surely override his plan, forcing it to its end before it even began.

* * *

 **I'm seriously on the fence about the ending of this chapter. I don't like it, but I do. Maybe I don't like it because it's not a cliffhanger. Still, though, if I would've kept going, this chapter would've been longer than I usually prefer my chapters to be. Besides, we need some action for the next chapter.**

 **Thank you all for reading and supporting I'm No Hero!**

 **Posted: August 30, 2015**


	5. Snowy Night in Burgess

**Time for chapter 5! I hope you enjoy!**

 **By the way, so many have been asking about what happened to cause Jack's drastic turn to side with Pitch. So, I'm going to try something here. Review or PM your guesses (some have already started to, actually!). Then in the chapter after the answer is revealed, I will acknowledge those who guessed correctly (or whose guesses were close).**

 **Review Replies:**

 ** _Warrior Nun_ : There's a glimpse of the Guardians in this chapter, but next chapter will be devoted entirely to them. **

**_Adventuregirltwi1_ : That would be a good plot twist, wouldn't it?**

 ** _IHaveNoName and IDC_ : That's a pretty good guess.**

 ** _GirlFish_ : Seems like it, yeah. Good observations!**

 ** _InsanityOwl_ : Yeah, you should! If you like Five Finger Death Punch, this song is definitely one of their better ones. I legit listen to it for about half of the time that I spend writing chapters for this story. It just never gets old.**

* * *

Chapter 5: Snowy Night in Burgess

Jack sat on the roof of the Bennett's house as the night grew darker and darker. It was still strange to not see the streaming golden dream sand dancing through the night sky. Without the presence of the Sandman, the night seemed lacking and Jack felt a little sad. He'd had no personal complaint with Sandy. In fact, Jack would not deny that he had truly been upset when Pitch had killed the little golden man…even despite not really knowing him all that well.

Hours passed and, throughout Burgess, the windows of the houses grew dark as the residents of the city succumbed to their need for sleep. By now the children should all be asleep. Still, the Guardians had yet to make an appearance. Surely, they would help Tooth to collect the children's teeth. Without Tooth's little fairies, the Guardians and Tooth would have to collect the teeth on their own or risk the Tooth Fairy losing many more believers again. Secretly, Jack hoped they did not avoid Burgess; he wanted to watch them struggle against his most powerful winter storm in all of his 300 years of existence as Jack Frost.

Waiting a while longer, Jack was about to give up and retreat back to his lake for the night when he heard the faint sound of jingle bells. North's sleigh. _**Oh, this is going to be good!**_ Turning his eyes up to the sky, Jack directed his attention toward the area where he'd heard the sound. Squinting, Jack tried his best to see through the wind and rapidly-falling snow. Finally, just barely, Jack caught sight of a dark shadow that seemed to be moving unsteadily through the night.

As the shadow that Jack knew to be North's sleigh moved closer toward the Bennett's house, Jack pulled the hood of his blue hoodie over his white hair in an attempt to blend more into the darkness around him. Jack watched silently as the Guardians, with a fair amount of difficulty, set to collecting teeth.

Jack could not see much in the dark with only the glow of streetlights to aid his vision, but he did get enough of a glimpse to see that it was nothing like the last time they had all set out to collect the teeth. Tonight, there were no competitions to see who could collect the most teeth. The three Guardians were all business. North remained with the sleigh as it was hard enough to control it with all the wind and snow from the blizzard. Tooth's wings struggled against the winds too and Bunny shivered and complained about the cold and snow.

Watching, Jack smirked at his work. _**There's no way those three are going to collect all the teeth out there in just this short matter of hours. Not with my blizzards covering most of the globe. Besides, last time, there were five of us and we moved much faster than this.**_ _**Good effort, Guardians,**_ Jack thought sarcastically, _**but it's not going to be nearly enough. Many more lights will be extinguished tonight…and I can't wait to watch it happen!**_

Seeing enough, Jack decided to retreat back to Pitch's lair to watch the lights flash out as children around the world woke up to find that their teeth had not been collected _ **. I don't know why those children will be so sad about not getting a quarter from the Tooth Fairy,**_ Jack laughed to himself. _**They're all going to have snow days. Aren't those better than quarters?**_

Remembering the location of the entrance to Pitch's lair, Jack decided to stop by his lake before returning to the globe in Pitch's lair. Jack told Wind to set him down by the lake and she obeyed once again, placing his feet down right beside the lake.

Jack stood by the lake as the snow fell quickly around him. The blizzard winds grew stronger with every passing moment. Closing his eyes, Jack extended his power to feel the strength and power of all his blizzards. Still he was amazed that he could accomplish such a daunting task. He knew that his plan would eventually drain his powers, but Jack felt that would be of little importance; by that time, he will have succeeded anyway.

The blizzard winds tossed back Jack's hood, but he did not bother to try to replace it back over his hair; there was no need to hide his white hair anymore. Jack looked skyward and was a bit surprised to see the glint of the Moon's light. It was not nearly as bright as usual, blocked by the clouds from Jack's blizzard, but Jack could still make out its light trying to shine through the storm. Jack scoffed and smirked. _**You gave me these powers, but did not tell me why or what I was supposed to do with them! You have no right to be mad at me for using them this way! If anything, I'm the one who should be mad at you. You turned me into…this and then left me to figure everything out on my own!**_

Jack took a step out onto the lake and it immediately frosted over completely. Taking several more steps, the ice on the waters of the lake grew more and more solid. The moon's weak glint of light shone down upon the lake and illuminated the frost, casting a reflection back up at Jack. Looking down, Jack smirked upon his reflection, the dark notions that shone in his eyes and the twisted smirk that occupied the place where his normally-easygoing smile would be. However, something else caught Jack's eye and he started. How had he gotten all this dirt scattered throughout his hair? Running his hand through his hair, Jack was dismayed to notice that the action had not remedied the situation at all. Locating one of the pieces of dirt, Jack pulled tightly. What came out in his hand wasn't dirt, though; it was a stand of his hair. _**A strand of brown hair? I don't understand. My hair has always been white. Why are there now strands of brown?**_

Looking up, Jack tried to locate the moon for an answer. The sky was dark once again; the clouds had shrouded the moon's light. Jack's gaze hardened and he angrily turned away from his reflection. _**No answer. Just like always.**_ Deciding that it probably was nothing, Jack walked away from the lake and toward the entrance to Pitch's lair.

* * *

 **Where was I going with this chapter ending? I had a point. (Yes, that is based off a line in Big Hero 6). Anyway, I don't know…this wasn't quite the ending I had pictured for this chapter. Oh well, I guess it works. Sorry, also, that the chapter title sucks so much. I just could not think of any other title that would not give too much away too early.**

 **So, Jack's hair is still turning brown…and now he's aware that it's happening! Cue teh suspense! Next chapter, though, we'll take a break from Jack and focus on the three remaining Guardians.**

 **Thank you all for reading and supporting I'm No Hero!**

 **Posted: August 31, 2015**


	6. The Guardians Discuss Jack Frost

**So…now that story stats are working again, I'm feeling seriously cheated that all the views on these past five chapters don't show up. I don't know why it upsets me so much, but it just does. You all should go back and view those chapters again (even if you don't read them!) just so that I feel better. Haha.**

 **Sorry for the lame chapter title that is super boring! My original title was too long. It was to be: "What Happened to Jack? How Can We Fix This?"**

 **Review Replies:**

 ** _storyland2_ : Thanks! I do apologize for the wait. Updates to all my stories are going to slow down once again. Weekend updates only now, because I'm starting a new job next week.**

 ** _GirlFish_ : I'm going to try to answer your questions without giving too much away too early. Haha. I will say that Jack WILL see his memories, but that scene definitely will not play out the same way as in the movie. Yes, Jack will have to be lucky to not be hated for his actions, but, somehow I think the Guardians would forgive him when they look deep down and realize what they did. **

**_Warrior Nun_ : Thanks for pointing that out! The error has since been fixed.**

* * *

Chapter 6: The Guardians Discuss Jack Frost

The Guardians had failed. They knew it instantly the moment that Jack Frost had flown away from England. In their own frustrations, they had all turned their backs on him and this was entirely their faults. All three collectively blamed themselves; each of them was responsible. North had made assumptions. Tooth had doubted. Bunny had let his frustration get to him. None of them were spared when placing blame on the reason for what Jack had done…what he was doing now.

Tension had been present between the Guardians after losing Easter, but it only exemplified, doubled, after Pitch Black had the nerve to show up at North's workshop. It was on that night, only mere hours after turning their backs on Jack Frost, that the winter spirit had stepped from the shadowy corner in North's workshop and they had all seen the full effects of their actions.

Jack Frost, the carefree young spirit of winter that they were just getting to know, had looked down upon them with such disgust and hatred…and pure evil. Pitch and Jack had left as quickly as they had appeared and the Guardians were silent. No one had known what to say, how to describe what they had just seen; none of them (even Bunny) wanted to believe that Jack had truly just abandoned them—and the children that he loved—just like that…just because of one mistake, the Guardians' one mistake.

How could they even call themselves Guardians? They could not protect two of their own, could not even guard the lives of Sandy or Jack. How could they be expected to guard and protect the children of the world after they had lost both Sandy and Jack to Pitch Black?

Still, they had to try. They had all taken the Oath of Guardianship. They would not go back on that oath. Hopefully, in the process, they could reclaim Jack from Pitch's clutches. Granted, it would be much harder, knowing that Jack had given himself willingly to Pitch.

That night, they set out to again collect teeth (since Tooth's little fairies were still being held captive by Pitch), but this time they were met with resistance. Everywhere they went, all across the globe, there were strong blizzards that were difficult to navigate. These storms severely slowed down their work (and it didn't help that half of the team from last time was no longer with them) and they just knew that there was no way they could possibly collect all the children's teeth by morning.

As they approached Burgess, Jack's hometown, the Guardians had hoped that the eternal teen had spared his own people from these storms. No such luck. The storm over Burgess was one of the strongest. Did that mean that Jack was there, in Burgess? Would they cross paths with him?

The whole way Bunny had shivered and complained of the cold. This was getting on North's and Tooth's last nerves. Yes, it was a little understandable since his Warren was located in Australia and he was used to warmer temperatures, but, still, he had fur! Bunny's fur would keep him warmer than Tooth's feathers for her and North's thick coat for him.

Because of the storm, Tooth and Bunny had to do the teeth collecting because, with the fierce winds that tore through the city, North did not chance leaving his sleigh. Tooth and Bunny did their best, but it was a losing battle and they were, before too long, forced to surrender to the storm.

"I know that kids expect that quarter the very next morning, but hopefully they understand how hard this storm made it for us to deliver on that promise," Tooth told them sadly as she and Bunny climbed back into the sleigh to return to the North Pole.

When they had successfully made it back to his workshop, North called a meeting of the three remaining Guardians. Neither Tooth nor Bunny objected. They had a pretty good idea what (or, more so, who) North wanted to discuss.

"Is everyone thinking what I am? About those storms?" he began.

"It has to be!" Tooth answered. "I mean, who else could…or would create something like this? It has to be Jack's doing!"

"Of course it's Jack's doing!" Bunny spoke up, a little louder than necessary. "Can we just skip past this type of discussion? I mean we know why he's doing this. We know how he's making these storms. I mean…he makes them with his powers, but what else do we really need to know about that anyway? Instead of wasting time, we should figure out what we can do about Jack. What caused him to change so drastically and how can we fix it?"

"Bunny's right. Reinstating facts that we already know won't help us help Jack."

"Uh…you mean, 'reiterating', right?" Tooth clarified. North did have a tendency to use the wrong words or phrases at times and it could sometimes lead to confusion.

"Whatever. Okay, let's discuss Bunny's two questions. First, what could have caused change in Jack?"

"Well, he did seem to bail out pretty quickly after…" Bunny began, "but even if he was that angry, I still couldn't imagine he'd be the type to turn so quickly on someone. There must be something else in play here."

"Are you saying that you think Pitch bribed him somehow…like, gave Jack some kind of ultimatum or something?" Tooth asked Bunny.

"I don't know anything for certain, but what I am saying is that I don't think Jack would freely choose to side with Pitch. You saw it too. Jack loves interacting with children. He doesn't share that common goal with Pitch. Even if Pitch did try to bribe Jack, I just have this feeling that Jack would decline such an offer."

"If Pitch did force Jack to side with him, how'd he do it?" North spoke up next. "I mean, you saw Jack. His actions, his mannerisms. They were all so different. It all looked…almost authentic."

"I noticed that too," Tooth replied to North. "If Jack is being forced, as Bunny suggested, wouldn't he still act, I don't know, a little more like the fun-loving Jack Frost we were all starting to get to know?"

The discussion switched back and forth with all three Guardians taking turns to speak "on the floor" about their thoughts on Jack and what may be causing him to drastically switch sides in this battle against Pitch Black. No matter how many different points each Guardian mentioned in the discussion, the answers they sought were still no closer to being found. Finally, they were forced to drop the discussion and admit that none of them knew (or could figure out) what had caused Jack's drastic change.

"Okay, so we just admit that none of us knows what happened to Jack. So…any thoughts on how to fix this?" North tried again.

Again, the answer to this question did not come easily. Because they did not know what had originally happened to Jack, it was hard for the three Guardians to pinpoint possible solutions.

"Did Jack return to Burgess after he left England?" Tooth wondered, a question to which neither North nor Bunny knew the answer.

"Well, if he didn't go back to Burgess, where else would Jack go?" North wondered, asking the question that all three were thinking.

"Somewhere cold," Bunny answered. "I mean…he is Jack Frost. Maybe, as strange as it sounds, he would seek comfort and solitude in a cold region."

"He didn't come back here to Pole. We came back here right after leaving England," North pointed out.

"What about…Russia?" Bunny asked.

"No," North answered almost immediately. "Russia not that cold. I know. Jack would be somewhere colder. I can feel it. In my belly."

Bunny launched into an argument with North about how Russia was "bloody cold enough!" but Tooth paid the men no attention. She racked her memories of the coldest locations to which she'd ever sent her fairies, but none came to mind. All the places she could think of were still warmer than the North Pole. Just when North and Bunny were about to engage in yet another Christmas vs Easter battle, Tooth figured it out. The answer had evaded her because she had never sent any fairies to the coldest location on Earth. "Antarctica!"

Both Bunny and North paused their argument when they heard Tooth speak. They looked over to their fellow Guardian and both men gave her and look that clearly said "Yeah, we weren't paying attention. What did you just say, Tooth?"

Tooth rolled her eyes, but repeated herself. "Antarctica. That's the coldest place on Earth. If Jack didn't return home to Burgess…which I'm not saying that he didn't, but…anyway," she took a breath to avoid derailing on another tangent. "Jack might have gone to Antarctica to seek comfort there."

The others nodded, but Tooth continued before they could interject. "In fact, I'm starting to think Jack probably did go to Antarctica. Think about it. If he went back to Burgess, he'd see all the children that he knows and loves. He'd watch them realize that Easter was…well, yeah, and he'd feel even more upset about what happened."

North nodded. "Makes sense. So, what do you think we should do, Tooth?"

Giving a small hopeful smile, Tooth replied, "I think I have a plan."

* * *

 **Many have asked for a Guardians chapter and here it is. Next chapter will center on Tooth. What plan do you think she has come up? You can guess now and next chapter we'll find out!**

 **P.S. It's so hard to write North and Bunny! Like…Bunny has all the Australian slang/dialect. I literally have a MS Word Document filled with possible words to use…since I know very little Australian words. As for North, with his broken English…it hurts my poor English major heart! But I still will write that way…just because it's in character for North. You're welcome!**

 **Thank you all for reading and supporting I'm No Hero!**

 **Posted: September 7, 2015**


	7. Clues Found In Antarctica

**Alright, as I said, here's a chapter devoted to Tooth! Depending on length of the chapter, it may return to Jack briefly at the end. If not, then we'll return to Jack in the next chapter…and see how he's dealing with his darkening hair situation.**

 **Review Replies:**

 _ **Warrior Nun**_ **: We shall find out!**

 _ **GirlFish**_ **: Got that right. Jack's not going to make it easy, that's for sure!**

 _ **storyland2**_ **: Yeah. Yay!**

* * *

Chapter 7: Clues Found in Antarctica

Tooth made the flight alone. When she had made that decision, she did not even think about what she would do if she encountered Jack in Antarctica. She definitely did not want to fight him, but Tooth also knew that Jack would not hesitate to engage her in battle. Hopefully, it would not come to that.

Flying was almost impossible. At times, Tooth would have calm winds and swift travels but, often without warning, the conditions would worsen as she would hit yet another of Jack's storms. _**How is he managing to control all these storms without weakening himself?**_ Even more astounding was how Jack was so powerful even without having any believers.

Currently, the conditions were mild. Tooth had just safely made it through another storm. Hopefully she would not hit any more storms as she approached Antarctica. The Antarctic winds would be strong and bitter enough.

As expected, the winds of the Antarctic shook Tooth up a little, but she still managed to land safely on the snow-covered ground. All around Tooth was gusting snow. No one (other than maybe Jack) lived on Antarctica and the continent had no distinguishing features. Maybe this plan wouldn't work. Tooth had hoped that she could find some clues here, anything that would help the Guardians understand what had happened to Jack.

Up ahead in the distance, a tall dark shadow caught Tooth's attention. _**What is that?**_ Flying closer, Tooth found that the shadow belonged to an impressive structure. Tooth looked closer at the structure, trying to figure out what it could be. _**It looks…almost like a fusion of nightmare sand and…ice? Is this where Jack and Pitch met up? I don't understand, though. Did Jack fight Pitch? Then, why did he join his side?**_ After seeing the dark structure, Tooth had so many questions and no answers. Only Jack and Pitch would have the answers to what happened here and asking either of them would just be a waste of time.

A little ways away from the dark jagged structure, something glinted, standing out from the white snow. Tooth flew over to dig the shiny item out of the snow. _**A tooth box! Jack's tooth box! He must've dropped it here.**_ While the tooth box would not necessarily hold any clues as to what had happened to cause Jack's drastic change, it was still important. _**Jack had this with him when we last saw him, in England. Jack was definitely here.**_

Now that Tooth could affirm that Jack had spent at least a short while in Antarctica, she scouted the area around the dark sculpture and resting place of the tooth box. She tried to combine these two pieces of evidence together to figure out possible solutions to answer the ever-present question that was Jack's behavior.

No matter how many times Tooth walked between the two places, though, she still found no connection. So Jack's tooth box was half-buried in the snow a short ways away from a sculpture that looked to combine the two strongest powers of Pitch and Jack. Still didn't answer any questions that would explain what had played out here on this snowy cliff. _**How was the sculpture formed? Was it formed by Jack's resistance to Pitch or was it formed when Jack first attempted to combine his ice powers with Pitch's nightmare sand?**_

Something dark caught Tooth's eye. It was a short distance away from the dark sculpture so Tooth flew over and stood above the object. _**Is that…?**_ Bending down, Tooth ran her hand across the dark object, letting the grains run through her fingers. _**Nightmare sand. Pitch's nightmare sand.**_ Tooth looked between the pile of nightmare sand and the giant frozen nightmare sand sculpture. Something just didn't add up. Still, Tooth was just glad to find some clues…even if they did not fully help to answer the questions that pressed upon the minds of the Guardians.

Picking up a handful of Pitch's nightmare sand from the pile that was left behind, Tooth clutched the black grains tightly as she flew back to the North Pole and the waiting Guardians. The flight back was no easier. In fact, it seemed (in the time that Tooth had spent on Antarctica) that the storm winds had even grown stronger than they had been earlier. _**How are these storms getting stronger? Does Jack really have that much power?**_ Tooth knew that she shouldn't worry so much about Jack; he seemed content to fight against them, to side with Pitch. Still, Tooth felt that if the Guardians didn't worry about Jack then no one else would. The thought of leaving Jack to fend for himself, especially now after 300 years of solitude, tore at Tooth's heart.

Tooth tightened her fist, both to keep the nightmare sand she'd collected from Antarctica from escaping her grasp and because she was frustrated with herself and the other Guardians for not reaching out to Jack Frost sooner. _**Perhaps all of this could've been prevented if… Jack, I hope you know what you're doing…and that you're not using too much of your power creating and strengthening all of these storms.**_

When Tooth arrived back at the North Pole, Bunny and North were eagerly awaiting her report. "So, Tooth, did you find anything in Antarctica?" North asked her almost immediately upon her return.

Confirming that she had found a few clues, all three remaining Guardians took at seat at the table. On the table in front of her, Tooth first placed Jack's tooth box.

"That's…" Bunny started immediately, but stopped.

"Yes," Tooth confirmed. "This is Jack's tooth box. It was half buried in the snow on the Antarctic continent. We were right that Jack went there after he left England. This isn't all I found there, though." She explained (as best she could) the structure that she had found on the cliff. "It looked like crystallized nightmare sand, like Jack had frozen the nightmare sand or…"

"…like combination of nightmare sand and ice," North finished, understanding what Tooth was saying. "But what does it mean?"

"That's what I couldn't figure out," Tooth answered. "I couldn't tell if Jack fought Pitch or if they were testing a combined attack." Tooth sighed then. "That's not all I found there." Unclenching her fist, Tooth dropped the nightmare sand she'd collected and let it pool into a small pile near Jack's tooth box.

"More nightmare sand?" Bunny asked, almost brushing off the new evidence that Tooth had presented.

"Yes," Tooth replied, "but this nightmare sand came from a loose pile that was sitting a short distance away from the frozen nightmare sand." Both of the male Guardians did not seem to see the importance in this final piece of evidence, so Tooth continued. "We know Pitch. He is careful and deliberate. He wouldn't just leave a stray pile of nightmare sand lying around, especially in Antarctica."

North stood up to retrieve a piece of paper and a feather pen. "Okay, let's first write down clues that Tooth brought back." In his calligraphy, North documented the three pieces of evidence that Tooth had shown and explained. "Okay, now that we have list, let's discuss how this relates to Jack. What might these mean? Make conclusions about what happened to Jack."

The three Guardians discussed and North continued to add details to his list. When the discussion dwindled, they still felt no closer to finding a definite answer that explained what had happened in Antarctica. However, now they did have a list, a starting point, which they could continue to ponder. Tooth didn't know about the other two Guardians but she promised herself that she would figure out what had happened to Jack. Then, when she did figure it out, she would find a way to fix the situation.

Staring at the loose pile of nightmare sand on the table, Tooth again tried to piece together several scenarios that may have caused Jack's drastic decision. She sighed in frustration and the sound caught the attention of both North and Bunny. Seeing their question glances, Tooth explained. "I'm just frustrated that I can't figure out what happened to Jack. I keep getting stuck on one question and it seems that question makes all the difference here."

"And that question would be…?" North prompted.

"Was this really Jack's true decision?" Tooth answered, glancing down again at the pile of nightmare sand. "Or did Pitch somehow force him to join his side?"

* * *

 **For those asking for a Guardians chapter, I hope this sufficed…even if it was mostly Tooth. Honestly,** _ **after**_ **Jack, Tooth is my favorite Guardian so naturally I was more inclined to write a chapter centering on her. Besides, she is the one who came up with Mission: Search Antarctica For Clues.**

 **I didn't know how I wanted to end this chapter (well, I did…kinda…I don't know. It's late) so I'll just end with that question. So, what do you guys think? Deep down does Jack really want to fight against the Guardians or does Pitch have some kind of upper hand in this decision? Stay tuned!**

 **Thank you all for reading and supporting I'm No Hero!**

 **Posted: December 31, 2015**


	8. The Last Light

**Finally, we return to Jack! We haven't seen him in two chapters since chapter 5…which was posted on the last day of August. It's been too long!**

 **I know we just got started with this story, but…a sequel is already in the works (planning stages). Isn't that exciting?!**

 **Review Replies:**

 _ **International Uzumaki**_ **: I've been wanting to write a dark Jack fic…and I really enjoy writing this story, so I'm glad you enjoy reading it.**

 _ **IHaveNoName and IDC**_ **: I'm sorry for the wait! I had to take an extended hiatus because of my two jobs…but I'm back now. I don't know how long until I'll return to extended hiatus. It might only be a month or two, but I'll write as much as I can until that happens. I hope to never give up on my stories, but I always work on many at a time, so…but I will try to always finish my stories.**

 _ **GirlFish**_ **: Great guesses! I'm thinking that more information will be revealed in this chapter (or next chapter if this one runs long). Yep, Jack's definitely not going to be rejoining the Guardians' side any time soon.**

 _ **Warrior Nun**_ **: That would be fun! Especially if Jack gave them that speech. Maybe it'll happen. We'll have to see!**

* * *

Chapter 8: "The Last Light"

 _ **Why is my hair still turning brown? How do I stop this?**_ Jack looked down upon the strand of brown hair that he had just pulled from his head. Right now, the brown section of hair (though scattered throughout his familiar white) was small, but it was growing by the day. If Jack had to guess, he'd say only about a fourth of his white hair had turned brown, but there clearly was no remedy for this…whatever it was.

Jack had taken to hanging around Pitch's lair. At least in the shadows, Jack could temporarily forget that his hair was turning brown. Although, it would only be a matter of time until Pitch would take notice of the change too. In an effort to hide this secret, Jack had also taken to wearing his hood raised over his hair. He used to rarely wear the hood, but now it gave him comfort. _**No one must know about this.**_

The storms that Jack had created were waning; he felt drained from the excessive and extended use of his power. _**It was all worth it**_ , thought Jack as he walked past the dark globe in the center of Pitch's lair. On the globe, the lights continued to fade. _**First the loss of Easter and now the strange absence of the Tooth Fairy. Soon, the Guardians will all fade,**_ _**just like these lights.**_ Jack smirked at the thought. _**Then our world of cold and dark will rise!**_

From the cages above, Jack could hear the squeaks of Tooth's mini-fairies. They clearly understood that Jack had no intention of setting them free, but they still seemed to hold onto the hope that he would change his mind. Jack looked up to glare at them before looking around Pitch's lair. Though he knew that he should stay there, Jack couldn't bring himself to remain in the dark gloomy underground of Pitch's…could it even be called a "home"?

Looking back to the dark globe, Jack noticed that the Burgess light was still there, glowing as bright as the last time he'd looked. Scowling, Jack knew exactly what he would do. _**Let's pay my hometown a visit and find this "last light".**_

Running through the tunnels, Jack got lost a few times before finally exiting out into the cold and snowy woods near his lake. "Wind!" Jack called out to his closest companion. She picked him up and waited to hear where he wished to go. "I need to find 'the last light', the only child who still holds belief for the Guardians." Wind asked Jack to promise that he would not hurt "the last light" and, with Jack's word, flew him into the small town.

Wind let Jack down near a familiar house. _**Wait, a minute. This is the house of that kid…Jamie. Why didn't I figure that out sooner? Of course, Jamie Bennett would be the last child to hold out in his belief of the Guardians.**_

Only just a few days ago, Jack had sat upon the fence surrounding the backyard of Jamie's home. There, Jack had overheard Jamie's question and Jack could still remember the boy's exact words. "Who's Jack Frost?" As Jack stood in front of Jamie's house, he smirked now at this question. "Soon, everyone will know Jack Frost. I will not be just some 'expression'."

Still, as Jack stood and stared up at the Bennett house, he felt a strange compassion grip his heart as he remembered the curious young Jamie. Jack's sneer softened into a semblance of a smile as he remembered throwing that first snowball, aimed perfectly to hit Jamie's back. Jack remembered the fun he'd had with Jamie and the boy's friends. The snowball fight and the wild sled ride that he had led Jamie on, speeding through the streets of Burgess.

Then Jack remembered the nights he'd spent in and around Jamie's bedroom. He remembered the loneliness he'd felt as he watched Jamie with his mother and younger sister, Sophie. Finally, Jack remembered another time, the wild night when he'd agreed to help the Guardians assist Tooth in collecting teeth. He remembered Jamie's flashlight, searching the Guardians but passing right over the space where he, Jack Frost, had stood. It felt like years had passed since that night.

With Wind's assistance, Jack flew up to Jamie's bedroom window. The window was slightly open and Jack listened in as Jamie talked with a stuffed bunny. The young boy appeared to be debating with himself about whether he should still continue to believe in the Guardians, specifically The Easter Bunny. Jack smirked. _**This will be easier than I thought.**_

Just when Jamie started to lose hope, the boy looked up and turned his attention to the open window. Jack started. _**Can he see me?**_ Hearing a crackling noise, Jack looked to the window pane and found that frost had started to curl its way across the glass.

Jack immediately drew his hand away from the glass, but it was too late. Looking into Jamie's eyes, Jack could see them brighten once again. Somehow, his one little slip-up had rekindled Jamie's belief. _**How?**_ Confusion turned to anger. _**How is his belief in the Guardians this strong that it can be restored so easily?**_

From nearby, Jack heard the sound of something large crashing into the ground. "Wind," he whispered to his companion. "Take me to the location of that crash."

As it turned out, the crash had occurred right outside the front of Jamie Bennett's house. North's sled had powered down with the rapid loss in believers. Tooth and North stumbled out and Jack could see that the loss of believers had seriously taken its toll on them both. Jack smirked. How could he pass up an easy opportunity to mock them about their current state?

Wind, at Jack's request, picked up the winter spirit and deposited him smoothly down in front of the downed sleigh.

Tooth was the first to notice Jack's appearance. "Jack!" She stumbled to the ground, but Jack did not offer a hand to help her back up.

North, leaning heavily on one of his twin blades, stepped up. "What are you doing here?" he asked Jack.

"Same as you," Jack answered, the dark edge clearly prevalent in his voice. "Well," he amended. "Almost. I am here for 'The Last Light' but I'm not here to keep it from being permanently extinguished."

Wind stirred, perturbed that Jack was thinking to go back on his word. Jack brushed off her concern. He wasn't going to kill Jamie Bennett. No, he had no complaint with the kid. He did, however, have no problem killing off Jamie's belief.

Not one to be ignored, Wind unleashed a torrent of air that lifted Jack's hood from his hair and deposited the fabric onto Jack's back. Without the hood concealing his hair, the Guardians easily took notice of Jack's dual-colored hairstyle.

"Jack! Your hair!" Tooth pointed out.

"Yeah? What about it?" Jack growled, annoyed at Wind for revealing this secret.

"Is turning brown? Why?" North asked.

"Why do you care?" Jack snarled. "It's nothing." Jack told himself to calm down. His anger-filled responses on this topic would alert the Guardians that something was wrong. They could be extremely perceptive. Taking a breath to compose himself, Jack developed an explanation and told the two Guardians, "If you absolutely most know, it's a fashion statement. White hair is so mainstream now, right, North?" His voice was dark, mocking the older Guardian. "Now, this has been so much _fun_ ," Jack spoke next, putting a dark and sarcastic edge on that last word, "but I'm a little busy extinguishing lights."

Jack turned back to call to Wind, but it was instantly evident that she was a little more hesitant to assist Jack; Wind was not taking a liking to this new dark Jack Frost. The streetlight situated in front of the Bennett house illuminated Jack and the Guardians noticed something that definitely had not been present on the winter spirit before.

"Jack, how did you get that cut on the back of your neck?" North asked, weakly gesturing to the location of the particularly nasty cut.

Jack's hand immediately flew up to run across the cut. When had that happened, actually? He did not even know it was there. The cut stung under his touch, but Jack only barely flinched, not wanting to show weakness in front of the Guardians.

Tooth made to fly closer but was reminded that her wings currently could not support her weight. She was close enough, however, to notice that the cut was dark, gray with infection. "Jack, that cut is infected. Please, come with us. We can treat it so it will heal."

Jack's eyes flashed black as he turned back to deliver a dark glare to Tooth and North. "I don't need your help. Now, for the last time, leave me alone!" Taking off at a run, Jack called out to Wind one last time. "Wind, come on, let's go!" This time, she reluctantly lifted Jack into the air and carried him back to Pitch's lair.

As Tooth and North watched Jack fly away, they both could not erase the image of the infected cut from their minds. How had Jack received the wound and why was it so…gray?

* * *

 **Well, I had this chapter ending marked into my planned out timeline, but I just could not figure out how I wanted to end this chapter. I hope this ending didn't sound too horrible.**

 **So…another strange abnormality with Jack. What is up with that? We'll find out soon enough!**

 **Thank you all for reading and supporting I'm No Hero!**

 **Posted: January 24, 2016  
** **3 days until my 25** **th** **birthday!**


	9. The End of An Alliance

**How has it been three months s since we last checked in with this story? Time is moving way too fast! Anyway…here's the next chapter of No Hero!**

 **Review Replies:**

 _ **IHaveNoName and IDC**_ **: Yep! I'm a teacher (substitute, but I guess it counts, right?) and I work at a grocery store. When I say "Dark Jack", I meant that he's not going to be the playful and fun Jack Frost that we all know and love. There will be no pairing between Jack and Pitch. I can't stand that "pairing", so I'm definitely not going to be writing it. I know it's been a few months, but hopefully it hasn't been too hard to wait for this update.**

 _ **GirlFish**_ **: I'd say you're on the right track with some of those guesses. Haha.**

 _ **TiaKay**_ **: Glad you like the story so far!**

 _ **Ace (anonymous)**_ **: Thanks! I'm glad that you like the story so far!**

 _ **XMENEVO (anonymous)**_ **: I'm sorry that this update took so long, but…here it is!**

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Chapter 9: The End of An Alliance

Deep underground in the dank darkness of Pitch Black's lair, one mysterious hooded figure lounged high above the ground. Without thinking about it, he ran his hand over the cut on the back of his neck. It still hurt to touch and Jack Frost winced at the slight twinge of pain. How long had the cut been there? Why had he not noticed it earlier? What had caused it? For the life of him, Jack did not know the answers to any of these questions.

Jack, with the help of Wind, drifted high above the floor of the main room in Pitch's lair. The room was silent; Tooth's captured mini-fairies no longer chirped as they knew that Jack would merely scowl and ignore their pleas. As Jack floated above the ground, he thought about his alliance with Pitch. There was once a time when Jack would have laughed at the thought of joining sides with Pitch; they'd never had the same goals. Now, Jack did laugh darkly as he thought about this strange alliance. The dark chuckle started soft and grew as Jack continued to think on this partnership. Turned out that they did share similar goals after all; they both held animosity for the Guardians.

Jack's expression darkened as he thought of The Nightmare King. _**Pitch is weak. Both he and the Guardians have been around a lot longer than I and, yet, he can't beat them without my help? Do I really want to ally myself with someone like him? He helped me to see my full and true potential, but his assistance ends there.**_

Shadows filled the room, darkening any small amount of light that may have found its way into the deep underground. Pitch had arrived. Slowly, Jack drifted down to the ground until his bare feet touched the cold stone floor of Pitch's lair.

"Appears your plan to create the series of superstorm blizzards was a success," Pitch greeted. "Last time I saw them, the Guardians looked awful. How glorious!"

Jack smirked at the praise. "Did you doubt me?" Then, only a moment later, Jack's expression tightened and his voice lowered. "Listen, I know that we share the same desire. We both want to see the demise of the Guardians. However, I feel that it's best for me to now end our alliance."

Pitch looked stunned but Jack could not find it in himself to feel bad for The Nightmare King. _**If he wasn't so weak, it would never have come to this,**_ Jack snarled in his thoughts. "Wait. What are you saying, Jack? You did not say what I just thought you said, did you?"

"That's exactly what I said, Pitch. You heard correctly. I no longer want to ally with you. You are weak and it's dragging me down, preventing me from accomplishing my goal."

"Weak?" Pitch asked in disbelief. "I'm not…"

"You are," Jack interrupted, his voice never wavering. "Think about it. You have been around just as long, if not longer than the Guardians and, yet, you could not beat them until I came along to 'assist'. Logically, that means I could beat the Guardians without your help. I don't need you." Jack's voice was ice, as chilling as the frost that crept up the staff he carried. "Goodbye, Pitch," Jack finished, turning toward the exit.

Pitch's anger grew as he watched Jack start to walk away; Jack could hear the intense emotion in The Nightmare King's voice as he yelled out, "Don't you walk away from me! Without me, you would be nothing. I MADE YOU!"

Jack stopped and turned back to Pitch. "What are you talking about?" he growled. "You didn't make me. You weren't there at my beginning. You didn't tell me my name. That was all Man-in-the-Moon…and you see how well that turned out."

Pitch's face etched into an angry sneer. "Fine. Leave. Walk away. Forget what I said, but just know that you'll regret this choice, Jack Frost."

With a shrug, Jack continued walking toward the exit. "I highly doubt that…especially when I exterminate the Guardians. Something that you can't seem to do, is that right, Pitch?" Jack laughed, a dark sinister sound that echoed throughout the underground lair, and then he was gone.

888

Outside the dark lair, Jack winced at the late April sunlight that burned his eyes. _**Well, it sure is a beautiful day in Burgess, isn't it?**_ he laughed. _**Guess I'd better fix that.**_ Summoning his power, Jack concentrated hard, reviving the super snowstorm cells that he'd created. _**First, I will create an Earth-wide eternal winter…and then I will deal with the Guardians,**_ he decided.

Closing his eyes, Jack pictured the storms, clouds pooling quickly and snow falling before anyone could even predict the weather. When he opened his ice-blue eyes, Jack smirked _ **. It is done…and this time, it…**_ His thoughts trailed off as Jack felt something, a disturbance, perhaps. _**…feels different. What is going on? My storms are not up to full strength. I don't understand. I've had plenty of time since the last set of super snowstorms to regain the power I'd expended.**_

Due to Jack's reduced power, he felt his snowstorms fizzle out before they even really started, leaving each location with a just few flurries. Jack growled in frustration. _ **Fine. I give it another day or two and then I will again revive the storms. Stupid power limitations.**_

888

Two days later, Jack's powers still had not returned. He could not produce so much as a single snowflake upon his palm. Jack felt truly drained. _**I don't understand. It's never taken this long to replenish my powers before,**_ Jack panicked. Glancing upward to the moon, Jack silently asked the rhetorical question that weighed upon his mind. _**This has nothing to do with the depletion of my powers, does it?**_

In his nervousness, Jack ran a hand through his dual-colored hair. If he had to guess, his hair was now about half-brown…at least, the last time he checked. Every time he looked, it seemed that there were more strands of brown mixed throughout his natural white.

 _ **Fine!**_ he yelled silently to the Moon. _**No more supercell snow storms. Are you happy now**_? "Wind!" Jack called out to his closest companion. When he knew that she was listening, Jack told her his request. "Take me away from this place. Anywhere but here. Antarctica would be good."

Wind swirled gently around Jack, latching onto him and lifting him from the ground. Jack was only a short distance off the ground when he felt Wind's grip shift. Then he was falling. _**What just happened?**_ Wind had never dropped him before and he'd been flying with her for over 300 years!

"What was that?" he yelled out to the Wind. As always, she did not reply…not verbally, at least. "You know what, I don't care. Just do it right this time."

Again, Wind gripped Jack, but she could not move him from the ground. He felt her power swirl around him, but to no avail. _**Now I can't fly with Wind? What is going on?**_

Hearing a rustling nearby, Jack stiffened. He already knew who was there, so he did not even bother to turn toward the sound. "What are you doing here? Did you come to gloat?"

* * *

 **I don't think I originally planned to stop here, but it's such a good cliffhanger…and we've bypassed the 1,000 word minimum that I set for all chapters' lengths, so it should be fine. So…who do you think has come upon a dejected Jack Frost? What has become of Jack's winter powers? Why can't he fly with Wind? These answers are among those that will be revealed in the next chapter!**

 **Thank you all for reading and supporting I'm No Hero!**

 **Posted: May 24, 2016**


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